Devotion - Tuesday, March 15

My devotional guide has me reading from John during these days of Lent. One of the ways in which John differs from the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) is the order of events. Whereas Jesus makes a journey to Jerusalem in them, John has Jesus in and out of Jerusalem on numerous occasions, and early on in the story.

This morning I read John 2:13-22. Here is contained John's account of the cleansing of the Temple.

Jesus enters the Temple. He fashions a whip out of rope and drives out the sheep, oxen, and money changers. His charge to them is that they have made of his Father's House a house of trade. The Temple serves a purpose, he reminds them. And that purpose is not being honored in the way they are using it.

How do we use God's house?

Before I proceed, let me affirm how heartening it is to come to the church and find a group of you typing away on your laptops, or watching the TV, or looking for leftovers in the fridge. I hope and pray that that will continue, even increase. This is a use of God's house; but it must be a bonus use, not the prime use.

How do we use God's house?

God's house is a place where we can feel safe, and comfortable, and at home. It is a place where we can explore our lives and our faith and know that this exploration will be supported by others who gather there with us. God's house is the place we say our prayers and expose the fears of our hearts. God's house is the place where we are assured that we have value and are valuable. God's house is the place we offer our hearts as well as our hands and our voices in service to others. In these ways, we honor God's house and do not make of it something it was not intended to be.

After Jesus cleanses the Temple, he speaks of tearing down the Temple and rebuilding it. John understands these comments to be an indication of God's intentions toward the body, not the actual Temple in Jerusalem. Following John's lead, and thinking of the Temple as our bodies, how would we answer questions about use? Are we using this "temple" as God hopes?

The use we make of the Temple is important. The use we make of our bodies is important. The forty days of Lent are a time to examine these and (where necessary) do a bit of cleansing of our own.